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Is It NASA’s Job to Make Muslim Nations ‘Feel Good’?
National Review ^ | 07/06/2010 | Elliot Abrams

Posted on 07/06/2010 7:00:42 AM PDT by SeekAndFind

In the spring of 1961, President Kennedy spoke to Congress about his desire to “win the battle that is now going on around the world between freedom and tyranny.” He told Congress and the nation that “now it is time to take longer strides — time for a great new American enterprise — time for this nation to take a clearly leading role in space achievement, which in many ways may hold the key to our future on earth.”

His inspiring conclusion: “I believe we should go to the moon” — though he noted that this would require additional expenditures of money and intellectual resources, and presidents were more serious about budgets in those days. Kennedy said, “It is a heavy burden, and there is no sense in agreeing or desiring that the United States take an affirmative position in outer space, unless we are prepared to do the work and bear the burdens to make it successful. This decision demands a major national commitment of scientific and technical manpower, materiel, and facilities, and the possibility of their diversion from other important activities where they are already thinly spread. It means a degree of dedication, organization and discipline which have not always characterized our research and development efforts. It means we cannot afford undue work stoppages, inflated costs of material or talent, wasteful interagency rivalries, or a high turnover of key personnel. New objectives and new money cannot solve these problems. They could in fact, aggravate them further — unless every scientist, every engineer, every serviceman, every technician, contractor, and civil servant gives his personal pledge that this nation will move forward, with the full speed of freedom, in the exciting adventure of space.”

A half century later, in the age of Obama, that kind of inspirational yet candid communication from Washington is gone. This past week, the current NASA administrator revealed what our current president thinks about space. “When I became the NASA administrator, [Obama] charged me with three things,” NASA head Charles Bolden told al-Jazeera. “One, he wanted me to help re-inspire children to want to get into science and math; he wanted me to expand our international relationships; and third, and perhaps foremost, he wanted me to find a way to reach out to the Muslim world and engage much more with dominantly Muslim nations to help them feel good about their historic contribution to science, math, and engineering.”

This quote is entirely believable. Mr. Bolden was not told that he must advance American interests in space, but instead to become part of the big Obama program of engagement with the “international community.” His achievements will be measured by whether he can “reach out” to make people “feel good,” and those people aren’t even Americans; no, his “perhaps foremost” job is to make Muslims around the world “feel good” about their past.

A more serious task might be to make them feel terrible about the present level of education in Muslim lands, not least for women and girls, in the hope that we could spur them to reform and improvement. The dismal state of science, math, and engineering in Muslim nations is quite clear, but Mr. Bolden isn’t assigned to improve their performance (which would presumably be the job of USAID, but whatever). No, he’s to be another Dr. Feelgood, a sad assignment for this former astronaut. Mr. Bolden should not be criticized for telling the truth about his job, for the problem is at the top, not at NASA. The space program is being transformed into a tool of Obama foreign policy, which views American national greatness as an anachronism.

— Elliot Abrams is senior fellow for Middle Eastern Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations.


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: frontier; islam; nasa
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1 posted on 07/06/2010 7:00:47 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
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To: SeekAndFind

NASA’s job: nuke the sons o bitches back to the Stone Age which is where they live anyway. Muslim civilization is an oxymoron.


2 posted on 07/06/2010 7:02:38 AM PDT by Ev Reeman
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To: SeekAndFind

MASA

Muslim Administration Sucks Ass


3 posted on 07/06/2010 7:03:41 AM PDT by cripplecreek (Remember the River Raisin! (look it up))
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To: SeekAndFind

What is the effect of presidential insanity and incompetence?

Where does it end?

His own party in Washington must see what we see....

Maybe they don’t know what to do, either.


4 posted on 07/06/2010 7:04:31 AM PDT by Rapscallion (Obama - The anti-American dictator disguised as a President)
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To: SeekAndFind

What is the effect of presidential insanity and incompetence?

Where does it end?

His own party in Washington must see what we see....

Maybe they don’t know what to do, either.


5 posted on 07/06/2010 7:04:45 AM PDT by Rapscallion (Obama - The anti-American dictator disguised as a President)
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To: SeekAndFind

I’m not that smart of a guy, but I fail to see the connection between NASA and US-Muslim relations. Am I the only one here? What’s next? The DOT regulating kittie litter?


6 posted on 07/06/2010 7:05:08 AM PDT by camerongood210
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To: SeekAndFind

One would think this a joke...but given the colossal collection of detritus and excrement that currently infects the West Wing....guess it’s gotta be true.

Guess we’ll have to wait until the upcoming war (civil, that is).

As is usual, I volunteer to operate the guillotine.


7 posted on 07/06/2010 7:06:03 AM PDT by Da Coyote
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To: SeekAndFind
“One, he wanted me to help re-inspire children to want to get into science and math; he wanted me to expand our international relationships; and third, and perhaps foremost, he wanted me to find a way to reach out to the Muslim world and engage much more with dominantly Muslim nations to help them feel good about their historic contribution to science, math, and engineering.”

If this is really NASA's mission then Bolden needs to fire the engineers and scientists and replace them with kindergarden teachers.

8 posted on 07/06/2010 7:07:35 AM PDT by The_Victor (If all I want is a warm feeling, I should just wet my pants.)
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To: SeekAndFind

Not that we needed any further evidence, but this revelation about Obamalamadingdong’s instructions for the NASA Administrator to make nice-nice with Mooslimbs gives us great insight into exactly who is occupying the Whitehouse.....


9 posted on 07/06/2010 7:08:06 AM PDT by Thermalseeker (Stop the insanity - Flush Congress!)
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To: camerongood210

Bolton was their GW/CC Fraudster at NASA.

Now he is their Islamofascist champion at NASA.

Sort of a multitasking kind of guy.


10 posted on 07/06/2010 7:08:17 AM PDT by Marty62 (marty60)
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To: camerongood210

Islam worships the Moon God. Evident in Obama’s efforts to use NASA to build a relationship. Islam feels we blasphemed their God by walking on him when we landed and walked on the moon. Mecca holds the Meteor in the Ka aba that they pray towards.


11 posted on 07/06/2010 7:09:17 AM PDT by realcleanguy
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To: SeekAndFind

Obama is clearly a Moose Limb!


12 posted on 07/06/2010 7:09:47 AM PDT by Don Corleone ("Oil the gun..eat the cannolis. Take it to the Mattress.")
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To: Da Coyote
As is usual, I volunteer to operate the guillotine.

If I help, will you mind if I whistle while I work?

13 posted on 07/06/2010 7:09:52 AM PDT by King Moonracer (Bad lighting and cheap fabric, that's how you sell clothing.....)
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To: cripplecreek

NASA - Nodding And Scraping to Allah.


14 posted on 07/06/2010 7:10:51 AM PDT by reagan_fanatic (Never trust anyone who points their rear end at God while praying.)
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To: SeekAndFind

Let NASA khow what you think at http://www.nasa.gov/about/contact/index.html


15 posted on 07/06/2010 7:12:28 AM PDT by thethirddegree
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To: SeekAndFind

What precisely is the greatest Muslim “contribution to science and engineering”?


16 posted on 07/06/2010 7:12:47 AM PDT by andy58-in-nh (America does not need to be organized: it needs to be liberated.)
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To: SeekAndFind
Is It NASA’s Job to Make Muslim Nations ‘Feel Good’?

it is if you have a lying narcissistic Muslim for president

17 posted on 07/06/2010 7:14:51 AM PDT by Doogle (IT'S THAT TIME AGAIN....PLEASE donate, because it's the RIGHT thing to do)
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To: Da Coyote

I’ll volunteer to put pig grease on the blade.


18 posted on 07/06/2010 7:14:54 AM PDT by thethirddegree
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To: SeekAndFind
They have always said that "they don't give Christmas gifts to the children" and "they don't give birthday gifts" which I am told is what Muslims do.

No Christmas presents.

Tree with Mao on it.

No church.

Rev Wright is an ex Muslim

50% of his "g-d America" church was Muslim

Records in Indonesia show him taking in Arabic Muslim classes reserved for the most feverent believers ...

----------------------

Egyptian minister: Obama told me he is a Muslim

""The Muslim Call to Prayer is one of the Prettiest Sounds on Earth" - said Barack Obama to the New York Times

http://infidelsarecool.com/2008/04/07/jeremiah-wright-former-muslim/

19 posted on 07/06/2010 7:20:40 AM PDT by DontTreadOnMe2009 (So stop treading on me already!)
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To: SeekAndFind

The insanity is getting off the charts. This guy has GOT to go in 2012.


20 posted on 07/06/2010 7:24:56 AM PDT by ScottinVA (The West needs to act NOW to aggressively treat its metastasizing islaminoma!)
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